


Do You Think You're What They Say You Are?

by flyingthesky



Series: Banned Together 2020 [5]
Category: Christian Bible, Jesus Christ Superstar - All Media Types
Genre: (that is the focal point of the vid), Christianity, Embedded Video, M/M, Minor Injuries, Religious Imagery & Symbolism, Video Format: Streaming, Whitewashing
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-01-18
Updated: 2021-01-17
Packaged: 2021-03-12 22:01:01
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 698
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28767480
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/flyingthesky/pseuds/flyingthesky
Summary: Don't you get me wrong, I only wanna know: Jesus Christ, superstar, do you think you're what they say you are?
Relationships: Jesus Christ/Judas Iscariot
Series: Banned Together 2020 [5]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1760965
Comments: 3
Kudos: 5
Collections: Banned Together Bingo 2020





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Sometimes you set out to make supercut of white actors playing Jesus and you accidentally make a Jesus/Judas vid. It happens to the best of us. If you want some notes about the vid and the full list of source media, check the second chapter.


	2. commentary & sources

Do you ever just set out to make a vid about the preponderance of white people playing Jesus because you got the "inaccurate Jesus" (or "insults religious figure") square on your [Banned Together Bingo](https://bannedtogetherbingo2020.tumblr.com/) card and then accidentally on purpose make a highlight reel of Jesus/Judas kiss scenes from various productions of _Jesus Christ Superstar_? No? Just me?

That's the whole backstory of the vid, for the record, but let's talk a bit about JCS and how it relates to the idea of accuracy in history. In some ways, JCS is like _Hamilton_ and is about the idea of history, rather than history itself. Well, insofar as the Bible is real history. I'm on the side of Denver in terms of Biblical historicity. That is to say the purpose of Biblical archaeology isn't to support or discredit the Bible but to provide a framework for a field of study that can help fill in the gaps. Whether or not the Bible is "true" is irrelevant and that's one of the reasons why I like JCS.

The question at the core of JCS is not whether or not what Jesus teaches is "true," but rather the effects of a cult of personality. The Pharisees believe Jesus to be dangerous because of the influence he exerts, but Judas believes him to be dangerous because he's losing sight of what matters. I think it was Tim Rice who said something to the effect of Jesus in JCS isn't necesscarily God, but a man who was in the right place at the right time.

This core philosophy of JCS makes for interesting staging, because each iteration of JCS (provided it's not a replica production) is made for exactly the moment that it exists. The original movie is a reflection of youth counterculture in the 60s and 70s and the Vietnam War. The 2000 version of JCS came about in a post-Columbine America, making the prominence of guns an easy choice.

Because of the anachronistic nature of JCS, it's created an history of mainly white actors playing Jesus. Acting is a very white space and the fact that JCS isn't concerned with historical accuracy there's no reason to seek out alternatives. You might've noticed that there's a conspicuous absence of the 2018 NBC Live JCS with John Legend as Jesus. That was intentional.

I wish I could say the use of mainly older films was also intentional, but that was mostly driven by uh. Current Christian cinema consists of films like _War Room_ and _God's Not Dead_ which was not what I needed. You google "Jesus movies" in this day and age and Google's like "Pureflix? You wanna sign up for Pureflix?" and it's like, no? Who do I look like, a guest masochist on God Awful Movies? I want movies _about_ Jesus.

Finally, there's two jokes buried in this vid. The first is more obvious: Aslan's here because I think it's funny and he's an inaccurate religious figure. The second is slightly less obvious and it's the clip from _The Young Messiah_ , which I wasn't going to include until I remembered that _The Young Messiah_ is based on an Anne Rice book. Anne Rice wrote a bunch of Bible fanfic and I'm not gonna let anyone forget it. We _must_ interogate the texts from the wrong perspective, you know?

For reference, the video sources for this vid, in the order you see them, minus the candle images. Gonna be honest for the candles I just googled "sacred heart candles" and picked some.

> [Jesus](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt11010804/)  
>  [Power and Glory Music Video](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l4E7or9z2YU)  
>  [Jesus Christ Superstar: Live Arena Tour](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt2596918/)  
>  [Son of God](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt3210686/)  
>  [Jesus of Nazareth](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0075520/)  
>  [Gethsemane - Broadway](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hrsyQ1HE2Eg) (2012, Paul Nolan)  
>  [Jesus Christ Superstar 50th Anniversary Tour](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hpo8Vc6JlFs) (2019, Aaron LaVigne)  
>  [Cristo](https://www.si.edu/object/cristo:saam_1996.91.42)  
>  [It is Finished](https://www.metmuseum.org/art/collection/search/187216)  
>  [Ideal Christ](https://www.si.edu/object/ideal-christ:saam_1968.155.79)  
>  [Ideal Christ](https://www.si.edu/object/ideal-christ:saam_1968.155.80)  
>  [Ideal Christ](https://www.si.edu/object/ideal-christ:saam_1968.155.116)  
>  [The Passion of the Christ](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0335345/)  
>  [The Greatest Story Ever Told](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0059245/)  
>  [Jesus Christ Superstar](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Jfb4O-qmq2c) (2000, Glenn Carter)  
>  [Jesus Christ Vampire Hunter](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0311361/)  
>  [The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0363771/)  
>  [Jesus Christ Superstar Tecklenburg](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7ADXhjCfF70) (2011, Patrick Stanke)  
>  [Jesus Christ Superstar](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0070239/) (1973, Ted Neeley)  
>  [Head of Christ](https://www.metmuseum.org/art/collection/search/437404)  
>  [Christ Carrying the Cross](https://www.artic.edu/artworks/234781/christ-carrying-the-cross)  
>  [Christ Addressing the People](https://www.si.edu/object/christ-addressing-people:saam_1956.11.12)  
>  [Study for "Christ"](https://www.si.edu/object/study-christ:saam_1983.114.18)  
>  [King of Kings](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0055047/)  
>  [The Jesus Film](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0079368/)  
>  [The Young Messiah](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt1002563/)


End file.
